esrosedotblog

DA VINCI

I have to report: I ended up not liking The Da Vinci Code very much. It is two things together: a puzzle that we have no chance of solving ourselves; and a blood and thunder chase story which needs a lot of coincidence to make it work. It is impossible to figure out who did it and why; a 'gotcha' book if I ever saw one. John says that I read it too slowly. It needs to be done fast. I guess so you won't notice there is not a lot to it.

I am the wrong guy for this kind of thing. I think things like "if these people didn't have all that money they'd be shit out of luck". I suppose that part of it has to do with my towering disinterest in religious iconography or any conspiracy theories aimed at the RC church or the gnostics or the Knights Templar or even the goddam Rosicrucians. You gotta care a little.

This book has been in the top slot of the NY Times Best Seller List (should that be capitalized?) for 46 weeks and that is in hard cover. Soon, the author will have enough money to pull off the same chase acrobatics that these characters do. I am a lone dissenter; a majority of one.

FORMICA

In today's NYTimes, Frank Rich compares the gay marriage rights movement (moving very very fast) to blacks sitting at formica lunch counters; both put an undeniably human face to their issue: The Joy of Gay Marriage.

It is a very upbeat piece making the point that happy faces often trump the prophets of fear and loathing. There is the backlash quotient of course. We await.

The insensitivity of politicians in the face of all this is sadly understandable. Don't rile the base. Kerry says he was not aware of what was going on out there in San Francisco. Really. I was about to vote for him in the primary and quit Dean entirely. So much for that. I will vote to send a delegate who will represent ME to Boston.

These are most interesting times.

"The right to marry whoever one wishes is an elementary human right compared to which 'the right to attend an integrated school, the right to sit where one pleases on a bus, the right to go into any hotel or recreation area or place of amusement, regardless of one's skin or color or race' are minor indeed. Even political rights, like the right to vote, and nearly all other rights enumerated in the Constitution, are secondary to the inalienable human rights to 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness' proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence; and to this category the right to home and marriage unquestionably belongs." - Hannah Arendt, Dissent, Winter 1959.

ALTERNATE

I am typing this on my standby laptop so that I get some time on the smaller keyboard and have a chance to get all the password stuff ready in case there is a seismic event on my eMac.

In addition, I am giving yet another trial to wireless computing in the house. We got the MacAirport thing and I seldom use it. Either the light is 'wrong' in other places in the house or I don't have a comfortable spot to sit or........I dunno. I am not in the habit of doing this 'everywhere' and when I come right down to it, why did I think it would be so great to be computing everywhere anyway?

Well, I have typed an item; and I have the practice and the fingers are actually aclimated to the smaller keyboard already. But, I do not have the answer to the other questions. Why am I doing this in some discomfort at the dining room table? I have never liked using a lap top on my LAP! And so what is the big deal with wireless? Uh huh. OK, over and out.

DEPPFEST

Today's movie BENNY AND JOON(1993) is whimiscal, sweet, sentimentally wonderful; the polar opposite of FROM HELL, yesterday's DeppMovie.

One more demo of the man's versatility. Here, he demonstrates his considerable comic gifts and skill at physical comedy–Keatonesque routines, gymnastics, funny takes– all without a double. It is him. We watched very carefully.

Depp falls in love with Joon; Mary Stuart Masterson. Aiden Quinn her brother Benny. Julianne Moore is Aiden's love interest. All are great together. The supporting cast is perfectly matched as well; Oliver Platt, Dan Hedaya, William Macy. One of the DVD reviews I read rate it as one of the best 90's films; "an on the edge of reality romantic comedy". John said 'they don't make them like this anymore' and I think he is right. I give it a 4 out of Netflix 5.

FROM HELL(2001)

Today's movie; part of our DeppFest! This is one intense piece of work. Our man is great in it. The film is by the Hughes Brothers (twins) who, up to this time, produced and directed 'black' films. This is a genre-bend for sure. London 1899; Jack the Ripper; new theory of who and how. It is based on the graphic novel (comic) by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell. Moore also wrote LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN which just came out as a Sean Connery project; didn't do very well. FROM HELL made its nut and is big on the rental circuit but the Hughes have not made another film.

We liked this movie a lot. It is scary and very gruesome. This role is made for Depp. He is the police inspector who adds opium hallucination to his bag of detecting tricks. The whole production is very skillfully done with loads of effects that surprise and please at the same time the basic violence repels. It helps keep us in it.

Ian Holme, last seen as Grampa Hobbit is a major player here and not at all hobbity. Heather Graham is OK as the love interest. Robby Coltrane also provides comic relief as Depp's sidekick. The whole thing keeps a balance and stays mid-road between slasher pic and boring conspiracy flick.

POINT

Just to my point earlier today, Bob sent me this: from The Economist:

SO AT last it is official: George Bush is in favour of unequal rights, big-government intrusiveness and federal power rather than devolution to the states. That is the implication of his announcement this week that he will support efforts to pass a constitutional amendment in America banning gay marriage. Some have sought to explain this action away simply as cynical politics, an effort to motivate his core conservative supporters to turn out to vote for him in November or to put his likely "Massachusetts liberal" opponent, John Kerry, in an awkward spot. Yet to call for a constitutional amendment is such a difficult, drastic and draconian move that cynicism is too weak an explanation. No, it must be worse than that: Mr Bush must actually believe in what he is doing.

See this article with graphics and related items at The Case for Gay Marriage.

I used to get The Economist but cancelled it when they got so into bashing Clinton. Maybe I should take a look again.

DENTAL

Today was checkup day at the dentist. Doctor Mike was ready with his magic ultrasound cleanup tools. I go in every four months because I am on the edge. Mike hasn't told me what I am on the edge of, but I trust his judgement.

Today's haul for the vacation fund (Mike's) was the cleaning itself, a full set of x-rays, and a future promise of three fillings. He will not travel far on this but everything helps. Actually, he told me that he was giving me the PIA discount.(Pain In the Ass-adds 20%).

Dr. Mike leaves 'em laughing and he is a great dentist. Anyone who can keep my teeth going for 7 years after another Doc's doomsday forecast is my man. He works alone. No second bananas. Theory is that he sees the whole thing and can respond more proactively. I believe him.

I went to a series of one-man operations for most of my life; then got into two hygienist-based places. The doc was an afterthought in both although one hygienist was so good she did a lot of the dentist's work for him. Not here. It is all Mike. The other advantage of the one-man op is the economic model. It IS less expensive. Mrs. Mike runs the office and, I suspect, Mike himself. I enjoy it all which is saying something isn't it? It being the dentist and all.

PACE

It is rain here. Franklin somehow interprets rain as a cue for walking much more slowly. He has not calculated the drops per square foot of fur at the run versus the amble. We got pretty wet going out for the necessary morning pee pee. Of course I could just let him do it his way and haul ass back to the house; but I am dog's best friend. I amble and we towel off together. He is upset at the rain, to the point of not eating his breakfast yet. Not me.

TRUE

Just a thought; another possible arguing point; as the idea of equal rights, under the law, does not seem to appeal.

Doesn't the idea of a constitutional amendment to regulate individual private consensual behavior bleach the true blue out of any conservative?

I don't get it. On the other hand, who said this had anything to do with patriotism, political philosophy, or actual personal belief? More bush-wah as far as I can tell.

POINT OF ORDER

Dave sent this: Power Point Slides for Prez.

NET GAIN

I got a nice breakthrough today. I needed a piece of info and a backup doc for my taxes. It is a few years old and I didn't think I would need it at the time; so I tossed it. It was not a very happy document. It had to do with a debt owed me that did not get paid in full. The party went Ch. 11 and all I got was a low percentage; not even a tee shirt. I guess maybe throwing it out was a way of getting bad karma out of the space sorta kinda maybe. Or maybe I was just a little overzealous on my clean desk crusade.

Anyway, things have changed. This year, I have a chance to use that loss to offset a gain. The document suddenly is important again. No paper. I thought I would claim it without backup. Not a good idea if you are going to get audited. Then I thought I would ask the lawyer who handled the thing to send me a copy of the missing doc. No answer to my calls. Well, why would he? It still pisses me off though

Then I got the idea that somehow, somewhere, there would be a web answer. I Googled "bankruptcy courts". Got a place that helped me find the date and number of the case for ten bucks. Then I saw that the court itself has a site. Went there and got that I could get a copy of 'cases' if I had a password and username from another agency.....sort of a government PayPal thing. Did that. They took me without me having a law degree. Good thing. Then to the case, then to the motions, then to the documents, then downloaded the final payouts and there I am! My amount owed and the amount I got paid! Not a happy reminder of an unhappy event; but, as most of that is behind me, it approaches being a happy event. I persevered on the net, I made a complicated process work for me, and I got the doc.

One more thing: it turns out that I thought the loss was less than it actually is and so I get to claim even more. Are you still with me? Zzzzzzzzzz. Well I feel good about it and I used to feel bad. Conversion.

Look at this graphic. I wasn't the only one losing my ass to bankruptcies. Look at 'em climb. I was just a face in the crowd

TIME ZONED

Time is constant, regular, always the same. That is why it is called time, right? The perception of time, however, is anything but. A minute can take an hour, an hour can pass in a minute, and the future can seem endless or very short.

Yesterday was just one full bore freakout about not having enough time to do all the things there were to do. By last night at supper time, I was sorta frantic; problems of my own making. Reality? Well, there was stuff to do but not that much stuff, and time? Well, I am retired, baby. There is a lot of time. And do I need to do all these things now? No. But when the skeezix hits, all this reality is too hard to take in and when it gets goin' it is hard to stop it.

I used to live in this condition almost all the time. Yeh, time. Scarcity of time; let's hear it. Over the years I have found that daily meditation has way lowered the incidence. There is a lot more space between the gottagitgoin stuff. Remembering to breathe and just focus on the next indicated action helps too. One task at a time. Time takes care of itself; the perception of it needs a bit of work. And as good as it has gotten, every once in awhile, I forget it all and hit the button. Last night was it. It is OK. It reminds me that I am merely human and the big S man said that means I can err.

AGENDA

You will like this one: The Gay Agenda

WHATTA DRAG

DeppFest Movie of the Day was BEFORE NIGHT FALLS(2000); the Julian Schnabel film about the life of Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas (Javer Bardem). Depp appears only briefly, twice: first as a drag queen who smuggles Arenas' writing out of prison in his ass and second as a prison warden who (I think) gets Arenas released. Unclear. There is some sado-macho stuff that is going on and I did not get it.

I included this film in the DeppFest because I did not see it the first time around and also because he has gotten a lot of notice for what is basically a (double) cameo appearance. Sean Penn is a walk on too but no one talks about that one or saves the photos.

It is very well done and no matter how I might have resisted, it got me deeply involved. I will rate it a 4 on the Netflix 5 scale.

Here we are with one of those unplanned conjunctions again; yesterday's boring Izzard show and my reactions to drag and the Depp routine today. I ordered the DVD months ago so.........here it is; a two-fer. Somehow this was OK as it was dramatically positioned and, most importantly, it worked. The thing about Izzard is that he kept bringing it up (John told me). He iterated his identity as an 'executive transvestite' whatever the hell that is; evidently not one of those unsavory ones. Here, the character is unapologetic and without self-reference; s/he just is. Maybe that is it: I don't like pushy drag queens. I don't know. Something to reflect on. Not very long though.

IZZARD

We missed a Netflix shipment today, so the 'movie' was a show by Eddie Izzard; DRESSED TO KILL. A friend loaned it to us. He is a tranvestite who is funny. Well sort of. The combo gets some points for originality of theme but then after you get over the TV part, you gotta be funny, don'tcha'?

I stayed for twenty minutes and realized that I had not even heard the last two or three. Time to roll. John stayed through the whole thing.

The cross dressing and makeup gets in my way. I have always had trouble with drag queens which he emphatically says he is not; a male tomboy. I know. I should be open armed and welcoming; but I am not. I accept that it exists and more power to the people who wanta do it but don't expect me to extend myself for it. And then I am not much of a fan of standup as it is done today. Blah blah. I would not have even written about this; it is a little embarrassing to find some latent bigotry in here; but it is part of my day.

I escaped to The Da Vinci Code which I am liking very much. It has scenes. Each ends as a cliff hanger. There are three or four story lines, each with its own scenes. A nice scheme. Four cliffs to hang from. I am resisting devouring the whole thing. I read a bit and take a break. No rush. I do not want to miss anything.

How could any novel be Number One on the NYTimes BestSeller List for 46 weeks? Well, I guess people like John and me who waited and waited to buy it. Here we are. It is a great book. You heard it here last.

WHETHER

Franklin is soooooo happy this morning. The rain has stopped. He is outside now (under a no-bark clause in his contract) luxuriating in the dryness of the air. He does not mind wetness on the ground; in fact relishes running barefoot in wet grass and even streaming gutters of water. But please, not on the hair. Fur. It is fur. A broken coat. The frizzies. I will let him in after awhile. This is an unusual case; to be out there in the dangerous dark with a zero-tolerance barking. But, he has done very well and is now asking to come back in. Gotta go.

WINNERS

It is no coincidence that Johnny Depp has won the SAG Best Actor Award--a traditional portent of Oscar. We have been doing the DeppFest all week and, well, it has just done the trick to push him over the top.

In fact, this tribute from fellow actors, over the likes of Sean Penn and Bill Murray, is, or should be, a more coveted award for any actor than the Oscar.

I pointed out already that both he and Charlize Theron who we saw together yesterday in ASTRONAUTS WIFE were both nommed. Now they have both WON! How coincident is that? In the same day?

I expect besiegement from nominees in all categories of various awards to be callin' for me to put the good mojo on them. It will be a bizzy week playing all those discs.

ASTRONAUT'S WIFE(1999)

DeppFest continues. They kept this one on ice and did not promote it when it did come out. There were no previews for critics. No one had heard about it. Yet, the critics who went liked it: and so did I.

Depp and Charlize Theron (both nommed for Oscars--for later separate films of course) appear as Astro and wife. In a way it is more Theron's film than Depps. Depp has a vaguely southern accent here; channeling Chuck Yeager. It is a walk on the evil side; he is not a hero.

There are some great scenes of space walks and other stuff. There is a lot of suspense. It'a a horror/spacealiens/rosemary'sbaby kind of flick. I give it a 3 out of Netflix5.

LINES

Andrew Sullivan yesterday:

AT THE END OF THE LINE: [I am looking at a] documentary short of the line of couples in San Francisco waiting to get married. I found it revealing and deeply moving. The pictures of all those regular and not-so-regular couples waiting patiently in line for hours and hours and even days to get a piece of paper which probably won't give them any rights at all - that's revolutionary in the public consciousness. Suddenly, it's not the gay pride parades and mardi gras festivals that illustrate gay lives. Suddenly, it's love and patience and kids and umbrellas and bouquets and tuxedoes and all the other bric-a-brac of living. How hard is it to tolerate that?

Heroes and heroines.

OUTAGE

We had a power outage this morning; just before sun-up. It was cool. I got to use the new reporting system--your phone number tells them the location and all. The service rep tells all and is nice.

We also got to try out our CyberPower battery backups: beep beep. The computers stayed on; we put them on sleep until we figured the power'd be out a while then shut them down. It worked great. The cable modem is also plugged into the battery--it has 6 outlets so there was no rebooting when the power came back on. Good deal.

It is weird to be blacked out. One tries to be calm about it, but something elemental is amiss. I say to myself "look, if there were an earthquake or something, this is how it would be so get used to it". But this is not an earthquake. It is an outage because we got some rain in the desert and our utilities ain't always up to it. Another thing to say to myself "look at the people in Iraq, they don't have power all the time". Then I remind that they shoot at one another over it.

So, I relaxed, John was up by that time and the three of us had some half-light fun. Franklin can see pretty well, no matter what; but he got that there was something funny happening. As if the rain was not funny enough; sopping pees and poops, short walks. On came the lights, on with the show.

SEARCH ME

I used Yahoo's new search engine to get the picture of the keys in the piece below. They dumped Google this week and started up their own data base which uses a technique called SLURP. I love the name. AND I have been getting consistently better image selections from them (over Google and AllTheWeb). Just reporting. More will be revealed.

HAZY

'We' lost John's Jeep keys about a month ago. I had a hazy idea that I was responsible and I did look for them; but John was so sure that HE was the perp, I let it ride. They did not show up.

We went to Crystal Chrysler and got replacements. Franklin got a ride. I got to hang with him in the car lot and dream a bit about when and what we would get to replace the Jeep someday. No candidates now, but there is a new wagon coming out. We will not get another SUV> Truck body. Not safe enough. While we were in the lot Franklin drew a lot of admirers.

I digress. Probably, to draw attention away from me. See, I found the keys this morning. In my pants. The ones I wore when I borrowed John's keys to move the Jeep from the top of the hill down to the carport. The haze cleared as I reached in there and found them. It all came back. I saw me take them out of the shelf near the door where he keeps his stuff. I fessed up. I told John I had found the keys where he left them; in my pants. He didn't buy it. We laughed.

PUSHING TIN

Today's movie slipped into the DeppFest as a leftover from the CusackFest. Netflix queing is not perfect. Nevertheless, I swallowed my compulsion to send it back unseen and am quite happy that I did. It was surprisingly good! The stuff about the planes is great. Somehow they 3D the screens (see pic); breathtaking. Cusack is the wizard traffic controller who breaks. Billy Bob Thornton helps him get his groove back. Cate Blanchett (Cusack's wife), talkin' no'th joisey here, is fun to watch. I give it a 3 out of a Netflix5. Depper is back tomorrow.

DOWNER

Ryan Lizza Campaign Journal 022004 in The New Republic Online gives a nice summary of where bush stands today in the hearts and minds of his countrymen. Now those of us who thought he was a liar from the get-go have a lot of company. Not good for this phase of the campaign cycle. Well, that's GOOD!

NOTE: My host for this blog is, of all things, BLOGGER!. They are nice people. They give me free space in exchange for which ads dance across the top of the page. I take more than an average interest in the karmic aspect of this dance. Frequently, the ads counterpoint what I am writing. Sometimes, as when the ads danced for george II, I disclaimed. Now, today I see that the banner is about hemorrhoid treatments. Not too far from george II actually, and, of course, part of the picture these days at esrosedotblog. Karma indeed. These cures are all organic and radically expensive. I did look them up. Well, as with the political stuff, I hereby disclaim the banner.

DOUGH

I have been laid off from the gym; partly because of my delicate condition and also because it is due. I try to take a week off every 10-12 weeks. Then I ramp up again. That way, I am able to back off the weights a bit after the break and max the 'training effect' of the same weight range. I do not have to keep adding weights forever to get a pump. There are limits afterall. I am not interested in power lifting and at some point the ligaments won't take the strain of addition.

Anyway, I have been off now for about ten days; one and a half training cycles. I am beginning to feel it; physically and mentally. The physical part is simple. I have gained an average pound and lost an inch off my chest. That extra weight went somewhere and it ain't lean muscle mass. Did I tell you I weighed and measured once a week?

The mental part is not the lack of the famed endorphin rush. It is more the onset of a negative self image that includes a belief that my clothes have tightened, my breath is shorter, and, in general, that I am going to hell. It is time to return to the gym.

I am kinda recovered and I will take it easy. I will set the weights back and do less effort to stop a set. I will moderate. And so on. Time to get off my ass. Ooooops.

WHEN YOU'RE 64

There used to be a staple news-feature where pop figures would be sketched in their 'old' faces; what they would look like when they got 'old'. I remember that the Beatles got a lot of this treatment; often not too kind.

I saw a picture of Sir Paul the other day, and had to admit those artists did a pretty good job. He has turned out just as expected. I do not have a point particularly. I think that I am somewhat surprised to find that I am here for the unveiling of the real 'old' Paul. I guess when they did the sketches I figured they were so I would know how it all turned out. But, as it turns out I am here for it.

I think that we are fascinated with other people's aging and almost unconscious to our own. At least I am to mine. I figure that I look just like I did then; well, except for the crepey knees.

Another interesting thing, when I google-imaged to find this picture I had to go to the third panel before I found any recent pictures. All of the ones on offer were of the young Paul.

DEPPFEST

CHOCOLAT(2000). We saw this in the theaters and wanted to look in again. Depp, in a less than leading role, as a gypsy lover; a bit of type casting as far as I am concerned.

Directed by Lasse Hallström (We saw MY LIFE AS A DOG a few weeks ago). Juliette Binoche was Oscar nommed for this and Alfred Molina, the new Fiddler's Tevya, is the villain in this wonderful piece of magical realism. A great companion for SCISSORHANDS the other day.

Depped again: 4 out of a Netflix5. Hell, give it a 5 out of 5!

PROACTIVE

So now, San Francisco is suing right back at the State of California to test the constitutionality of the 'only man and woman' proposition that was passed a while ago. Even Bill Lockyer, the Attorney General, lauded the effort in a back handed way; he is sworn to defend the State law after all. I cannot imagine that there will be an impassioned defense of something that the State AG calls wrong.

I find this approach astonishing! Who would have thought that taking the bigots straight on would have such 'git-go'. You know, personally, I do not care one way or another about the actual term that is used--union or marriage. But now, I can see that I am part of the giant conspiracy against equal rights for every one. By settling for less, I underline the legitimacy of the hair splitters who say 'oh yes equal rights'; but at the same time 'oh no to the sacred-SACRED?-institution of marriage'. Separate but equal accomodation don't cut it. So. I am for marriage. And now.

I see that Chicago--also a City/County form--is looking into doing the same thing. Whew. Those long lonely walks up Boston's Tremont Street on Stonewall Day 30 years ago DID lead to something. At the time, it was a scary business. No crowds on the sidewalks. No cheering. The silent canyons of the office buildings. There might have been a few hundred people marching in the early years.

Actually, I have never thought that our action did not pay off. There has been steady progress for all this time. Sometimes, I get a bit discouraged over the lack of appreciation that many younger gay men have for the foundation of rights that was laid back then; but that is another story. I am sure that many leaders of the black civil rights movement would be dismayed to see what has happened on some fronts; but that is the price of freedom--people will do their things. What we wanted in the first place.

BADNEWS :)

Fortunately, I cannot cram all of the bad news for the bushers into one item: national polls earlier in the week show them losing to either Kerry OR Edwards; the scientists (20 Nobel winners) who accuse them of distorting science to meet policy (what a suprise that one is); the continued failure of the Iraq 'plan' to stay the same one day after another; the utter lack of credibility in the projection of over 2.5 million jobs (even in a WSJournal poll; the 'don't believe' column was 90%); the assertion by a key economic adviser that shipping jobs off shore is a good thing; the failure of three or four attempts to staunch the wounds of NON-combat service and on and on. It is almost a joy to read the bad news these days. This morning, we see that California gives 54 to 37 (9 undecided) percent of the vote to ANY Democrat who runs against this bush.

George the First lost his ass his fourth year too. It would seem that sustaining credibility on the basis of distortions and outright lies has a limited shelf life; certainly less than 4 years. In the end, incompetence and venality will out.

TACTIX

GEST WHO?

Jaw dropper of the day (IMDb Celebrity News):

Liza Minnelli's estranged husband David Gest is reportedly planning to tie the knot with Motown legend Diana Ross. According to American magazine Us Weekly, the concert producer is engaged to convicted drunk driver Ross, who was sentenced to two days imprisonment earlier this month. Us Weekly editor Janice Min says, "Sources close to us have said it could be Diana Ross." Gest, 49, and Minnelli, 57, are currently in the throes of a vicious divorce battle and are suing each other for millions of dollars. Gest claims his wife, whom he married in a flamboyant, stat-studded ceremony in March 2002, assaulted him during a violent outburst leaving him to have over 80 shots in his head to "deaden his nerves." Meanwhile Cabaret legend Minnelli claims Gest stole money from her and sold off her possession on the internet. Earlier this month Gest told American TV presenter Stone Phillips he was ready to marry again. Phillips says, "He expects to marry again within the next two years. He wouldn't tell us her name, but did say his new love, like Minnelli, is a well-known showbiz personality." Recent reports suggest Gest and Ross found love when he was comforting the 59-year-old soul singer, following her arrest for drink driving in Tucson, Arizona in 2002.

ALL WET

We got rain yesterday. Franklin and I just missed it in the afternoon. It rained, it stopped, we walked, it rained. He is funny with it. He does not like to get wet and so rain is an 'enemy' force; but it comes so rarely, he does not have it hard-wired into his reaction protocols. Go out? Stay in? Run for cover? Play with the puddles? Run and jump to get the drips and drops in the air or just sit it out. Of course, when you gotta pee you gotta pee and that takes over, all other priorities fall behind it and he gets wet. We have fun in the toweling off though.

FAREWELL

A very nice tribute to Howard Dean in the NYTimes: Goodby Candidate Dean. Right on the button.

SURPRISE

Gavin Newsome is the new mayor of San Francisco. He is so new and previously obscure that he has only eight photos that google. I bet this changes. See San Francisco Mayor Exults in Move on Gay Marriage in today's NYTimes. There is even a better picture in there.

It would seem that Newsome has done this thing almost single handedly. A lot of people are pissed off. Good.

The pissed off range from george and laura who weighed in yesterday to (gasp), of all people, Barney Frank! Barney feels that the radical act of marrying people who want equal rights undermines the 'more legitimate' efforts in Massachusetts. Well, that is where Barn runs for election. He used to be our Representative. Now our rep is Mary Bono and she is not for the DMA and may even be for gay marriage but she is caught twixt her very gay electorate and the right wing of the Republican Party which butters her bread. She is a libertarian. Hmmmph.

Nonetheless people are getting married up there and John and I have talked about gettin' in the car and goin' on up country to get ourselves hitched. Not now. We are, after all, registered as Certified Domestic Partners in the State of California and in 2005 will get all the goodies (if any) that our straight counterparts get. That takes care of the legal side.

As for the romantic side, I like the idea of the outlaw; the love that dare speak its name; even in the face of the bigot. Getting married might make us just another couple; part of the boring landscape of Palm Springs. This way we remain a bit exotic. Actually, there are so many long term gay relationships here that exotic is a stretch. Maybe we are not all hot to get married as we have seen what happens in a lot of marriages and don't want any. That brings us back to george and laura but we will not go there today.

KHAKI

Kerry vs. the Chicken Hawks this morning in Salon. I wondered when the matured and pissed off Vietnam war veteran (as well as the real veterans from all the wars in fifty or more years) would begin to see how they have been used. And used by the chicken-shit army at that; the guys who did the spotty weekends if any time at all in the champagne units. I notice the article does not use the field terminology for the near draft dodgers.

I know whereof I speak. I did not do my reserve service. I am pre Vietnam; but I can tell you that, even then, it was a snap to evade. I would be one of Michael Moore's 'deserters'. I was ROTC and when I got out of my obligatory 6 months active, I adopted a friend; and not one that was either high in the echelon or too close to me either. He was just the regular Army coordinator for the area. He happened to have a summer place near where I grew up. I remember him saying: "You really don't want to go to weekly meetings do you?" He fixed me up with a correspondence course that I never really worked on much. I did go to summer camps for two weeks for six years and found guys like me who could wangle a soft berth or none at all. One year, another reservist and I spent a whole week in a motel around the swimming pool as we 'observed' an airborne exercise.

The unit that I would have been assigned to ended up getting shipped overseas to Germany during the Berlin 'crisis'. They had to stay there with nothing to do for two years. I failed to qualify for Captain at the end of my 'time' and was flushed out.

I have never been particularly proud of this; nor have I had much guilt and remorse. But then, I have not tried to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear; used my experience dressing up as a soldier to make a PR airdrop on a carrier.

I think that the military experience issue is a hot one in this election. The veterans who have gotten sold out over and over might help undo the phony patriotism and puerile posturing of this poor-ass president.

WHAT

 A question from the audience: "What Depp films are in the DeppFest?

We saw CHOCOLAT and GRAPE but want to see them again.

DEPPFEST

Today's movie is EDWARD SCISSORHANDS(1990) and a triple header: Johnny Depp, whose festival this is; Tim Burton, whose work we like a lot; Diane Wiest, who (whom?) we love and have not seen since I AM SAM(2001) and additional bonus performances by favorites Alan Arkin and Vincent Price (we think his last one).

The idea behind the DeppFest is that, while we dote on Depp, we have not seen all of his pictures: passed on some that we thought beneath him or not 'our type' of film. We are throwing this over for a few pics that we think might be worth a try. We shall see what we shall see.

We liked this one; Burton's take on the Frankenstein story. I give it a 4 out of a Netflix 5.

DEA-NO

Oh well. He made a huge dent. I think that he needs to be careful how he handles this to remain effective and influential. He was a hell of a date. I am not hooked up again. No rebound effect. I am still in blur.

If this were about boyfriends, Dean would be one more stop on the impossible relationship trail: exciting, attractive, fun to be with, but self destructive in the end. Fortunately I have not played this out in my lover life, only my political.

I was right there with all the losers both national and local. Clinton was my one great success. The trouble with political relationships is that they are term limited; no 27 year runs for our guys. And, they never come back. But if Bill C. was on any ticket any where I would be back with him in a heartbeat.

=

It is interesting to watch the narrowing foothold for the bigots and christers who resist the inevitable acceptance of gay rights in whatever you want to call it--marriage or union. Even Jesse Jackson, now in the long slide into post-demagogic oblivion, weighs in with his quaint notion that gays do not have the same human rights 'potential' as blacks. Jesse lives in a narrow vision world where there are no gay blacks. He is so out of touch with the world and himself. And since it has been all about him, all the time, he is massively in limbo now; there is no him there. I have never liked or appreciated him but could pass on the details as he did 'the Lord's work'. I do not want to kick anyone when they are down but Jesse, get outta here with that!

I DO

I had a bad time there for awhile thinking that we had left the State where gay rights in marriage or union would be decided for once and for all. NOW look at California! While the Bay Staters work out the language and good fortune to them, we are marrying them left and right in the County and City of San Francisco in a major test of the Prop 22 Marriage Defense act out here.

The response of the government to the outraged and blindsided fundies is neat to watch. The judges fail to consider it all an emergency, thus allowing days and days of more marriages to get consummated and even our new Governor has given the required defense of the law statement in the most tepid terms. SO. Keep on keepin' on Massachusetts, we will meet you at the courthouse; the Supremes!

DEANO

Sad to see it all wind down like this but now he can play kingmaker. He may not have enough to make it but he has a lot to push the outcome. I still hope to vote for Dean on March 2d. But, if he is formally out of it I will go the way the wind goes. I probably do-not-like Kerry less than I do-not-like Edwards; the south in the mouth guy. God knows I love southern boys, I have one at home! But there is something a bit forced about all that 'pone. Edwards wins on affability and his stump talents but I am not impressed with his real weight. His idea that successful courtroom experience makes him presidential is not very persuasive.

WHO?

Franklin and I have owls hooting in the morning now. We are not hearing them at night but I am sure they are out hunting. I hope they are picking up our rats.

They have been in the neighborhood at various times over the years we have been here. Every once in a while we have seen one doing a flyover while in the spa before bedtime. Graceful grey. Slow in the air. Gliding. Very big. I know of one tree they stay in down off the mesa; I saw one fly out early one morning as I biked by.

Have you ever heard owls? It is the most gentle song. Whooo. Who Who. Different patterns. Ours are at least a pair. We get them in stereo while he is peeing and I am stargazing at 3AM; our UP time. They remind us of the wonder of the morning, the proximity of nature, and the gentleness that can be there for us if we only stop to listen or look.

MOULIN ROUGE(2001)

I know I am swimming upstream here but I so did not like Today's Movie. If you knew how many html tags both on and off to make that 'so' you would know how much I so did not like it; uhhh six.

I was looking at my watch at 17 minutes and it took that long because I couldn't believe what I was seeing. The visual mish-mash might be appealing to the MTV crowd but I suspect not as the overly made up characters were not very interesting after a couple of shots. The story? OK. Opera. The acting? Overwrought. Well, it is opera, so.... The choice of music? I liked some of it. When they fall in love on the roof I was OK with it. There was a little emotion here and there but I suspect I was manipulated.

I suppose I am just being an old fart about this but what happened to original music? What happened to Nicole Kidman? Weepy. Coughy. Hack Hack. Talk about chewing the scenery. Oh dear. Jim Broadbent and Ewan McGregor were pretty good in spite of. Fortunately we were spared too much of Leguizamo doing the ontheknees Lautrec thing so he came off pretty well.

I am going to rent the first MOULIN ROUGE done by John Houston in 1952. Jose Ferrer. Zsa Zsa Gabor. Yeh, her. Now she could tell Nicole a few things about over-acting. The first one was not really a musical but then neither is this melange of visual pop. And so on. Don't listen to me. I am out of the loop. I knew that I did not want to see it when I saw the trailer back then. I figured with the DVD I could reconsider. John says it takes the big screen. I cannot imagine it being goddam BIGGER. It was so over the top I had to move back from the teevee screen so I wouldn't get any on me. Like I said, don't listen to me.

It is true. I write a lot more about the ones that I do not like.

FORE

Hal, Dave's college and life friend is here for a couple nights. He is in the golf business and there was a convention across the mountains. If you are into golf, then PS has got to be a destination; so we are getting the fringe benefit of spending time with him while he 'tests' a local course.

It is wierd to see our kids' friends grow up. In a way, our kids never age. They seem the same, year to year, because we see them all along the age-path. Now, when a friend of the same age walks in, it is a bit of a stunner to see that your son's peer has grown up, is a healthy, successful, good looking guy who is flirting with middle age!

This last part is a revelation. If Hal is 39, then how far can Dave be from that same number? Whew. Then one more step. If they are aging, then so am I!! Whew. I hardly ever consider it.

But this is the way I like it: more or less constant ignorance of the process of 'older'; punctuated with occasional reminders of the fact from the real world. This is nice because I can stop and reflect that I am also healthy, successful, good looking and just barely flirting with old age. The feeling from here is that it is OK. I am up for it.

INDISPOSED

I have been working against the odds for about a week. I will spare you the details, but I have been spending more time than usual in sitz baths and worrying about developments 'down there' as Aunt Tillie used to refer to anything indelicate to mention. I have not had any episodes for awhile; maybe not since I had radiation treatment in 1997. Before that, it was a common occurrence, but good health and good sense have more or less prevented recurrence. But, undeniably, there they were.

I treat any illness with a good bit of shyness. I do not embrace the event. I stand back and act coy while the condition develops; hoping, I suppose, that it will flirt then move on. This rarely works. In this case, not at all. So, I began the simple home remedy; sitz baths (in our spa) and witch hazel. No dice. Then I escalated to the reccomended Metamucil to keep the strain out of the process. Not enough. Soon, I was working the OTC approach. Tronolane is good. Not good enough. Finally, I caved. Call Doctor Jim and have him renew the old cortisone ointment prescription. It had lapsed from disuse a couple of years ago.

Why am I burdening myself and you with the details of this? Well, it shows my fundamental unwillingness to accept that I need to take the time and effort to heal myself; to be proactive. And furthermore, shows my unwillingness to use expertise and experience--our Doc for example--to solve a medical problem.

There is another aspect of this; carrying on as though nothing was wrong. When 'it' started I went to the gym on my normal routine. I did have the good sense to skip the bicycle seat when Sunday rolled around. But it took me three days to figure that normal physical stress was not a good idea, particularly as most weight training puts a burden 'down there'. So I took my week or more off. I am still off. Did I mention before that I had skipped my routine ten week gym vacation? It was due a month ago. Well, now I am having it.

So now I am mending and doing pretty good, although yesterday, I skipped the bike again and walked the dog with John in the morning. He had the idea to do an extra half hour and I, of course, agreed. I paid the price later in the day. But this morning everything is back on track to recovery. Oh what the hell; it is hemorrhoids. I don't want you thinking that I have something really awful; particularly anything involved with the 'front side of down there'. That would be too much to take for all of us.

TENSION(contd)

More about this thing with walking Franklin; expectation/reality; whose good dog will he be, his or mine? Franklin LOVES grass. The grass kind not the gettin' high kind. There are days that he will stop to take a taste at any opportunity; a true grass 'jones'. He especially goes for Bermuda Grass--actually a weed here unless it is on a lawn or golf course. He grabs, he chews, all else goes from his mind. It drives me NUTS!

What is this all about? Not reality. The fact is that grass is not bad for dogs. He passes it most days without any trouble. If he does not chew it well, he might get too much of a wad in his tummy. If this happens, there is a simple natural remedy: he throws up. It is not even dramatic. It is almost always outside. Nature does what it must for a wayward pup.

How do I figure in this? Well, somewhere I have adopted an attitude about grass eating. Another thing is that I do not like him to dawdle. I am on a walk here and so is he. We are not to have fun, or worse, EAT!

I get all petulant about it. I jerk his chain (nicely called 'checking') to no avail. I scold. If I keep it up, I will ruin a nice walk and a good time with my buddy. On good days, I will quit in time and sort of apologize; a friendly pat, a walk to where he is and a gentle reminder of our purpose and it is over for both of us. I might actually let him eat the grass and stand still, look around, smell the air, relax and enjoy the process. On bad days, I can be an asshole about it. Fortunately he is forgiving and those times are getting less and less. A dog is a good trainer for the soul.

TRIBAL

Palm Springs and our local Indian Tribe are the grist for the Salon lefty mill this morning with The Big Gamble. The slant is obvious. They even picked one of the few unflattering pics of the Chief (a neighbor--well he rents the house out). The details a bit overstated. Actually, the new Casino is a pretty nice addition to the town and most people like it. There aren't that many fat Republicans in Palm Springs anymore; just us slim Demos. The cats are out in the gated compounds; Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, La Quinta--where, ironically, it is windier, hence dustier, and hotter than our little community tucked up against the mountain. Most folks on a mission do not notice that PS is just a village. The rest is a Valley that wants to use the PS cachet for itself. But I digress.

We are facing changes here as a result of the 'gaming'. We do not call it gambling--the 'bl' is bad. Read it, take the usual grain of salt here and there. It has pretty accurate bones.

TENSION

I am alternately amused and shocked to see the tension between my expectations and reality. This is quite vivid when I am taking Franklin for a walk. Expectation: Franklin is a smart, well behaved, handsome dog who does all the things I think a good dog ought to do. Reality: Franklin is a smart, well behaved, handsome dog who does all the things Franklin thinks a good dog ought to do.

When expectation and reality are out of alignment, the internal struggle begins. The argument may not even be entered. I may react automatically, checking the leash; shouting 'NO!' If the thought process unfolds, it is, at first, about how to get HIM to conform. Neither of these tactics work. And, it leaves me pissed off and possibly contrite and guilty for over-reaction.

When I can relax, and realize that Franklin has all the stuff to make his own choices including stepping out of line and that I do not have to get in the way of his doing it, freedom begins to peek around the corner.

When trouble looms, the tension rises, I can breathe. Relax. Give it some time. See what happens. More often than not, even if I do have to intervene to get that goddam kleenex out of his mouth, I can do it kindly and with some perspective. The other thing is, that he might actually drop it first. This is a much better solution.

The gap between my expectations and reality shrinks. We are happier together. I get a better idea about being dog's best friend instead of his master. Some say we should 'master life". Perhaps we can become life's best friend.

CON

Today's movie: CATCH ME IF YOU CAN(2002). We missed it the first time around. We don't much like DiCaprio (cream puff), Hanks (success-bloated) or Spielberg ( beyond moguled). So, we eschewed the opportunity to see it on the big screen. Yet, gnawingly, the film's rep was good and got better with DVD so we got it. I have to admit that while all my assessments remain true, the named trio pulls something very special out of a hat; and we even endured through its 141 minutes. (Did I tell you I was movie usher raised on the 90 minute system and believe, to this day, that is all that is needed to get the job done).

We are supposed to dote on the transformation between Hanks and DiCaprio. Cop and prey. For me, the best parts; and the most emotional were the ones were between DiCaprio and Christopher Walken, his movie Dad. Walken usually plays the wild man and we love it and him; but here, he is Dad. Measured, calm, and in a dream world all his own. It is not hard to see how the son became the famous con that he did or that, when he paid the price, he became, and is still, enormously successful on the right side of the law.

So, gotta write this line: 'If you have not seen it, catch it if you can!'. Nudge.

THAT'S RICH!

My Hero, Janet Jacksonby Frank Rich in today's NYTimes kinda captures it all for me.

PAPER CHASE(1973)

Today's movie. Dated. God, did we really dress and wear our hair like that? Yes, I have pictures to prove it. I bailed out after an hour. Dull except for Houseman's performance. Houseman, who had an extremely varied career and was a professor, won an AA for this--Best Supporting Actor.

There are some other people of note. We have James Naughton as one of the students. He most recently was the director of the Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward OUR TOWN. We saw him in the musical CITY OF ANGELS! He shows little promise here, actually; but it could be the role he plays. Another student is Edward Herman who is your stock patrician in a lot of films (FDR). And Lindsay Wagner, who I last saw in a mattress commercial in the early morning at the gym; something that has a separate hardness setting for two sides. And so on.

The presumed star, if Houseman was supporting, is Timothy Bottoms. He has had a busy career almost entirely in B pics and TV. Most notably, he perfected a sneer and smirk to portray George Bush in a teevee series called THATS MY BUSH. I shudder to think. It did not last very long. His photo at IMDb is in this role; pretty good resemblance. For the first time, I am aware of bush' sleepy eyes. Look at the woman playing Laura!

I do seem to go on more about films I do not like than the ones that I do. There are more links here. It is the trivia quotient I think. A distraction for the unengaged film watcher. I will give it a 2 on the Netflix5.

LATTER DAYS(2004).

Yesterday's movie was seen in a real theater! This small budget, near independent, gay-niched, romantic story was obligatory viewing. John saw it at the film fest and suggested I see it. Unlike many gay-centric films it is a whole person exploration of many levels of relationship and, on the way, is able to take a good look at the peculiarly homophobic Mormon mind set. So it is interesting as well as fun to watch and emotionally gratifying to identify with.

I thought that it avoided the usual unattractive and counterproductive bashback of the evil forces very well. I hate the 'do as bad to others as they have done bad to you" approach. They focused on the story; show to tell. And, while there are a lot of little 'miracles' here and there that seem a bit too miraculous, it is successful. I liked it. There was a tear at the end. The actors in it were great and did not resort to stereotypes. OK. If it was a Netflix I would give it a 4. And it was a great setup for Valentine's Day. Today! Happy.

DAYOFF

I took yesterday off. I think that is the first time. When I set out to do this, I imagined a daily report or comment or 'whatever'. The 'whatever' part had been a cinch and, up to now, the daily has been easy to do and not a burden.

Why a day off now? Is the blog suddenly a burden? No. The day merely got complicated. I am an orderly guy and when the 'natural' order goes awry I have to rearrange a new order. The domino theory becomes a reality.

The big dislocator was a decision to go to a real movie in the afternoon. No choices in that. The times are set and they are a bit odd or, worse, at odds with my convenience. I would not get home until 5; meaning that my dinner prep would have to be done before the movie. That, in turn, dislodged the times for other things. I had to exchange the morning for the afternoon Franklin walks with John; other stuff.

Something had to give. The blog won. On the other hand there have been no complaints from my three readers so I guess it is OK. I am back

CZECH IT OUT

Today's movie was CLOSELY WATCHED TRAINS (1966): Czech new-wave; small scale; big themes; coming of age; WWII occupation. This film is very kind to all its characters; even those who are less deserving of kindness.

I liked it a lot. I saw it when it 'came out'. I had not; yet. What was I doing in 1966? I was working for the Cranberry company, I was living in Plymouth, MA and I was (still am) the father of four kids. I bet I saw this at the Art Theater in Marshfield MA; a great little house that lasted a few years. This was back when we actually had art films including imports from a lot of countries. The dreary truth is that we had more and better films then than now.

This film would not make it into the distribution systems today. It is Czech, it is small scale, it suggests sex rather than shows the details, there is death and no blood. None. BUT why complain. Technology can do for us what the system cannot; and the odd paradox is that, as the movie distribution system is dying, the access to good films improves by leaps and bounds. This one is digitally remastered by the Criterion Collection; Janus Films. Great. I give it a 4 out of Netflix5.

HALFTIME

Click the BOONDOCKS link to the right! Today's panel has more to keep us 'abreast' (wink/nudge) of the sports entertainment scene. If you are doing this a day or more late, use the archives for 021204 for the one I am citing. Siting?

I love Boondocks. It took me awhile to get with it. I am not sure why. Not racial bias certainly. Nooooooo. But once I got directed to its web location, it became a daily thing for me. Sometimes it is a bit too black for me to 'get it' but if I work at it, I guess get a little blacker too; 'cause then the next time I get it.

I am not a comics page guy. I read ZITS every day because it is at right top in the LATimes Comics. Easy.

KERRY

Well, one thing about the Democrats, their candidates are not sexually neutered nor are their campaigns quiet right wing affairs....ooops. Wrong word. See Drudge today click on at right. Apparently, we are having a bit of a media meltdown in the rumor mill.

I will take this down if it is not confirmed fast, but if not.....well we shall see what we shall see.

EISNER

Comcast has made its move for Disney. Unfolding events will surely rival any film scenario. You have to live within the epicenter of LA business life to understand the depth of animosity toward Michael Eisner. The media provides a constant drumbeat of criticism and backbiting from both sides. It is far more riveting to follow the Disney chronicles than the sports page.

The LATimes is filled with joyous vitriol today. At last, the suppressed can speak and the old opponents can gloat. Eisner is one of the last corporate despots: the guys who control the boards; who get paid every year no matter what; who have run the enterprise so far from the scrutiny of shareholders that the mind boggles.

Eisner has been responsible for gutting Disney of any opposition or competition from the Board or other executives. Even the family, notably Roy Disney, have been tossed. The list of executive talent which have left voluntarily is quite lengthy; start with Katzenberg and move forward. One ex-exec who is having his payday is Stephen Burke from Comcast. Look at this from the Wall Street Journal.

Takeover Team Knows Its Prey Inside and Out
Comcast Chief Brian Roberts Has Asset in President Stephen Burke, Who Worked for 12 Years at Disney

In June 1998, Michael Eisner called up Brian Roberts, then president of Comcast Corp. and began yelling. The chief executive of Walt Disney Co. was furious at Mr. Roberts for hiring Stephen Burke, one of his senior executives, to run Comcast's cable systems.

After he hung up, Mr. Roberts immediately called Mr. Burke. "I know I got a great guy now," he said, according to someone familiar with the call.

Mr. Eisner now has more to be angry about. Comcast is citing Mr. Burke's 12 years of experience at Disney at three of its divisions as one of the reasons that Disney directors and shareholders should back its $48.7 billion unsolicited offer for the entertainment giant. Comcast executives said Wednesday that Mr. Burke would oversee the merger and have a major role in running Disney if the bid succeeds.

Mr. Burke, Comcast's president, knows the Disney empire well. During his 12-year career at Disney, he launched the company's chain of retail outlets, helped lead the turnaround of Euro Disney and eventually was promoted to president of ABC Broadcasting. He was so successful he was on the short list of likely candidates to succeed Mr. Eisner.

The doctored photo of Eisner is from the website of The National Labor Committee For Worker and Human Rights which is a major Disney critic

SERVICEMAN

Even a cursory reading of the release of bush' "complete" military pay records makes me wonder what they are thinking. Are they so insulated and bubbled that they don't get how incriminating all this is? NYTimes this morning:

The issue is not whether Mr. Bush, like many sons of the elite in his generation, sought refuge in the Guard to avoid combat in Vietnam. The public knew about that during the 2000 campaign. Whether Mr. Bush actually performed his Guard service to the full is a different matter. It bears on presidential character because the president has continually rejected claims that there was anything amiss about his Guard performance during the Alabama period. Mr. Bush himself also made the issue of military service fair game by posturing as a swashbuckling pilot when welcoming a carrier home from Iraq. Now, the president needs to make a fuller explanation of how he spent his last two years in the Guard.

All they have done is raise new questions. This is the 'cover-up' cycle. There are more. Good. Get done to you what you have done to others.

FATMAN

And now, (gasp) Dr. Atkins is not only rumored to be obese but shown to be from the medical records wrongly sent to some Doc who wants to prove the man a fraud; someone who could not or would not practice what he preached. What Killed Dr. Atkins?

I wouldn't much care; another diet fadscam gone bust; another guy who doesn't walk the talk. But, I have friends who have gone on this thing and believe in it. You cannot deny the short term effectiveness, but long term, it is a disaster. Even in the short term, it does not help solve but aggravates the real problem: overindulgence and ignorance about good nutrition.

The immediate weight loss, combined with the gratification of fat and protein are a strong induction to deny the reality. The beauty of the Atkin's formula is that it does not stretch credibility on either end. An ice cream diet would give lots of gratification and you would lose weight; but it stretches wishful thinking too far. The pounds would drop with bread and water; but there is no gratification.

You cannot save people from themselves. I have been a prime example from time to time; so why do I think that my nagging could help others? Maybe a fat old cadaver might rock the boat and help people come to and think for themselves.

FATSERVICE

(Later in the day) So get this: both of today's stories have been put together in Andy Borowitz' column. Do you think he was reading this blog?? Link to the right for 2/11/04 archive.

SADDAM PLANNED TO DESTROY U.S. WITH ATKINS DIET
Plotted ‘Axis of Obesity,’ Says Bush

Saddam Hussein planned to destroy America by luring every man, woman and child onto the Atkins Diet, President Bush revealed today. U.S. forces searching Saddam’s hideout in Tikrit uncovered the evildoer’s plans to destroy the U.S. with the fat-laden diet, the President said. “We now have conclusive proof that Saddam Hussein and his agents intended to turn us into a nation of artery-clogged, cellulite-jiggling fatsos,” Mr. Bush said. “His evil knows no bounds.”

HIGH FIDELITY(2000)

Today's movie and an annual event. Everyone should see this film once a year. It is one of the great ones even if it is not on the NYTimes1000Best. Wrong year. When they got to the end of the list they didn't have room for the 2000's.

I am also in a bit of a John Cusack festival. We saw SAY ANYTHING the other day.

In this one, JC is ably abetted by Jack Black (his first big film), Todd Louiso (in one of his few films-I love him-check this site out), Lisa Bonet (all three here with JC--l. to r.), Iben Hjejle as the love interest (in her only English language film), many walk-ons by the likes of Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lili Taylor, Tim Robbins and the ever wonderful Joan Cusack. All are directed by Stephen Frears in this soup of pop-reference, real vs. romantic love, and very slick and sassy smart talk.

I am giving it a 5 on the NetFlix5 scale.

JUST IN: The Todd Louiso fan club informs me that he directed Phillip Seymour Hoffman in LOVE LIZA. It got a lot or red tomatoes. Go Todd. Also, his full film bio is at IMdB. This guy has serious potential for the cult hero of our time.

BLUR

The primary has become a blur to me, now that Dean has faded out. It seems over and it really has not started. I do not vote until March 2d and I have already lost interest in it. I took a blog day off yesterday to reflect on it.

I am glad about a few things. They are thumping on george instead of each other. They have lost that spineless, deer-in-the-headlights thing. I am glad that Dean is holding on. I want to be able to vote for him, at least.

I cannot get interested in Kerry except for the larger non-bush reason. On the other hand he might be resurrectable. He doesn't look as dead on his feet as he used to. Many times the Office has made the man. Maybe the run will make the man and send him into office. I do believe that the primary process is an excellent prep for the big one. Look what it has done for all the Demos.There is no training period for george; he is just sitting in his glass bubble.

Come March 2d I will cast my vote for Dean, then join the march to the White House. Anyone but george. The California Demos called the other day for money. Even the caller seemed dispirited. But I am probably projecting. In either case, I passed. And so on.

DUTCH TREAT

Elmore Leonard has written 39 books and I have read all of them. Well, one is actually short stories. I wait for each one to come out. He never disappoints. I did not much like the one that took place in the 19th Century, but, in the end, it is all good. I am in the middle of the new one; MR. PARADISE. It is tasty; more to the hard core than recent ones. I read them very slowly to get all the savor and flavor I can out of them.

I met Leonard in Chicago at a book signing. There wasn't much of a line at first. He is very shy. We have some things in common and we talked for a while. I was in the middle of one of his books at the time and he signed it right where I was reading. Nice. Oh. All his friends call him Dutch. See the picture. I didn't get to know him that well. He is still Mr. Leonard to me.

If I were to write fiction, I would emulate his writing. There is nothing extraneous. It is something. Live speech. Very little description. The characters tell us what we need to see. Oddly, they end up being very cinematic; my mind's eye is filled with the scene. I do not go to the movies of his novels as they all fail; even the successful ones (GET SHORTY). But, I do not go to any films based on books that I have read nor do I read books of any movies I have seen.

I realize that I do not talk much about my reading in the blog. I guess as the reading is a constant; and I have been deep in the DRAGONS OF PERN books for about a year. There are a lot of them. I take breaks. The last non-dragon book was a sword and sorcery novel IMPOSSIBLE ODDS by Dave Duncan who is another 'read everything' guy.

Lest you think my reading lacks depth, I should say that I am slowly reading the Sam Pepys bio as I am following the pace of his diary. I wrote about that one below. I have the very best Churchill bio on the coffee table and have a book mark in it. It has been there about a year or perhaps two. John has the DA VINCI CODE and I will read that one when he is done. I am not sure that qualifies as 'depth' or not. I am not much interested in non-fiction. I go to sleep. I used to read a lot of contemporary novels and then found fantasy fiction (not sci-fi) and took a turn onto genré road. I have not looked back.